Living in Harrow

Harrow is a north-west London borough of suburbs that grew rapidly along the Metropolitan line in the early twentieth century, when the railway company marketed the area as Metro-land. Today it includes Harrow town centre, the historic hilltop village of Harrow on the Hill, and suburbs such as Pinner, Stanmore, Wealdstone, Rayners Lane, Kenton and Edgware.

It is one of the most religiously and ethnically diverse boroughs in the country, with large Hindu, Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities and a particularly large Gujarati population. Temples, mosques, synagogues and churches sit alongside restaurants and grocers reflecting South Asian, Sri Lankan, Middle Eastern and Eastern European cultures.

Harrow on the Hill is dominated by Harrow School and St Mary's Church, and its steep lanes offer long views across London. Pinner has a village high street with timber-framed buildings and the Heath Robinson Museum, and Stanmore has Bentley Priory, the Battle of Britain headquarters now used as a museum. Green spaces include Harrow Weald Common, Stanmore Common, Canons Park and Headstone Manor Park.

The Metropolitan line runs fast trains from Harrow-on-the-Hill to Baker Street, and the Jubilee line serves Stanmore and Canons Park. The Bakerloo line and Overground reach Harrow & Wealdstone, and Chiltern trains serve Harrow-on-the-Hill and Sudbury Hill. Journeys to central London are faster than distance suggests from the main stations. For many families the calculation is simple: a house with a garden within a short walk of a fast Metropolitan line station, in a borough whose temples, mosques, synagogues and churches reflect one of the most mixed populations in the country.